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Quick Guide to Chemwatch (Gold FFX)

October, 2014

Chemwatch have now released a new version of Chemwatch – now called ‘Gold FFX’

The following is a quick summary guide for this new version.

Important notice regarding bookmarking Chemwatch – Please Read!

Unfortunately there is an issue with the way that the latest version of Chemwatch has been set up that

causes issues with bookmarking this site. We have been provided with a link that automatically recognises

when you are accessing the site from a University of Otago computer and then logs you straight in without

requiring a username or password (based on recognising that the IP address of your computer is from the

University of Otago). However, unfortunately there is an issue with the way this works that means that if

you attempt to bookmark the website and then attempt to use this bookmark at a later date – you will get

asked for a username and password. This guide contains instructions on how to set up a bookmark that

will work. If you are still not able to get a functioning bookmark – contact the Lab Health and Safety

Advisor (rob.mclaren@otago.ac.nz) to be provided with a username and password.

1. Accessing Chemwatch/Gold FFX

To access the latest version of Chemwatch click on the link below:

http://jr.chemwatch.net/chemwatch.web/account/autologinbyip/

Note, this link can also be found on the Health and Safety Website.

This will take you to the Chemwatch (Gold FFX) dashboard.

Please note the comments above regarding bookmarking the site this link takes you to – instructions for

making a functioning bookmark are provided under (7) and (8) at the end of this guide.

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2. The Gold FFX dashboard.

A. Search window – by default this is set to name – simply type in the name of the chemical you want

to find and then click on ‘search’. To search by some other criterion (e.g. CAS No.) click on the ‘+’

symbol beside ‘Name’ and select what you want. Note, under the search pane the ‘full’ button

should be filled in (as above).

B. MSDS settings – by default this is set to ‘Gold MSD’. These are the full-length Chemwatch-

authored MSDS and all written in a standardized way. However, if you prefer you can select

‘vendor MSDS’ for a copy of the original vendor MSDS (where available) or ‘mini MSDS’ for a one-

page summary quick reference sheet.

A

B

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3. Retrieving search results

When you search for a chemical (e.g. Sulfuric acid), Gold FFX will retrieve a list of chemicals corresponding

to the search query – in many cases this will include a range of commercial products that contain the

chemical as a major ingredient, and may also include entries for specific concentrations. You will need to

scroll through these to find the one you want.

A. Just click on the material name of the chemical you want to download the MSDS. Please note –

this may take a moment or two (a download bar saying ‘rendering’ will usually appear).

A

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4) Reading/printing MSDS

Once you have downloaded the MSDS, you can either -

A. Scroll through the document on-screen.

B. Click on the document icon at the top left of the MSDS to bring up a menu that you allows to go

straight to a particular section of the MSDS.

C. You can print the MSDS by clicking on ‘Print’ on the menu bar – this will download a pdf of the

MSDS which you can then print.

D. Click on ‘Back’ to go back to the search results if you realise you’ve selected the wrong item.

A B

C D

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5. How do I find HSNO Classifications?

Either scroll to Section 2 (Hazards identification), or use the document button on the top left to pull up a list

of sections and then click on 2 (Hazards Identification). The location of the HSNO classifications is circled n

the image below.

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6. How do I find Dangerous Goods classifications?

Either scroll to Section 14 (Transport), or use the document button on the top left to pull up a list of

sections and then click on 14 (Transport).

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7. Instructions for bookmarking Chemwatch using Internet Explorer

1) Use your Internet explorer to go to the web address below -

http://jr.chemwatch.net/chemwatch.web/account/autologinbyip/

This will take you directly to the Gold FFX dashboard - which should look something like the page below.

However, notice that it actually redirects to you to a different address from the one you entered. If you

simply bookmark this address it will not automatically login you back in next time you click on the

bookmark. However, follow the instructions below to manually edit the bookmark to use the correct link

above every time.

2) Click on the yellow star icon with the green arrow at the left of your bookmark toolbar (highlighted with

red arrow above).

3) This adds a bookmark (‘FFX’) to your bookmark. Right-click on this bookmark and then click on

‘properties’ at the bottom of the menu that appears (highlighted with red arrow below).

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4) The dialogue box shown below (left) will now appear. Under the ‘web document’ tab – replace the web

address given in the URL box with the web address given above in step 1.

If you wish, you can also go into the ‘General’ tab (below, right) and change the name of the bookmark

from FFX to Chemwatch.

Now Click ‘OK’ at the bottom of the dialogue box – you should now have a properly functioning bookmark

for Chemwatch!

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8. Instructions for bookmarking Chemwatch using Firefox

1) Open Firefox and right-click on the menu bar in the area under (but not on) the ‘home button’ and star

icon (in area highlighted by red arrow below). This will bring up a menu as shown in the image below.

2) In the menu that appears, click on ‘New bookmark’. This should bring up the dialogue box below. Under

‘Name’ just enter whatever you want to call the bookmark (e.g. ‘Chemwatch’) and under Location, cut and

paste in the following web address:

http://jr.chemwatch.net/chemwatch.web/account/autologinbyip/

Then click ‘Add’ – you should now have a functioning bookmark for Chemwatch.